How Cassie Got Her Grind Back(Divine Creek Ranch 23)(45)

Veronica chuckled and said, “Once a nurse, always a nurse. I hope she’s all right.”

Some slight noise from the back, a gasp or rush of movement had him up out of his chair a second later.

“Mama,” Cassie said as she kneeled beside her mom in the food prep area. “Mama!” Kate slowly got to her knees on the floor while one of the other workers reached over and turned off the lit burner.

Kate held Delicia’s wrist in a gentle grasp as she looked at her watch and then looked up at him and Hank. “She’s unconscious. Her airway doesn’t appear to be obstructed. Pulse is weak. I think we need an ambulance.”

“On it,” Hank said with his phone already to his ear. “Don’t worry, Cassie, we’ll get her help. Thank God the hospital is only a block away from here.” He turned away as the call connected and began speaking to the emergency operator.

The employees stood there, looking at each other, unsure what to do, while Cassie held her mother’s hand and whispered to her. Ivan spoke quietly to one of the workers, obviously giving directions, and the young woman nodded and smiled, seeming grateful for someone to tell her what she should do.

The wail of a siren came closer, and bystanders craned their necks in curiosity as the ambulance pulled up near the front door. Seeing a way to be helpful, Samson cleared a path for them and held the door open as possibly one of the tallest men he’d ever met hopped out of the vehicle with jump kit in hand while another technician opened the back of the ambulance as he spoke into a portable radio.

Samson propped open the door in case they needed a gurney and went back into the kitchen as Hank ushered all the nonessential people out of the area. The extraordinarily tall technician was kneeling beside Mrs. Villalobos, taking her pulse as he listened to what Cassie told him.

“Don’t worry, Cassie, we’ll take good care of your mom.” The technician looked over at Hank, and understanding what was necessary, Samson stooped and helped Cassie to rise.

“Let’s give him room to work, baby.”

“Thank you, Eli,” she said as she released Delicia’s hand. The other technician joined him, and they were all business.

Hank helped Kate to rise to her feet, and then the rest of the group rejoined on the other side of the counter. More customers had come in, and Cassie had eyes for only what was going on with her mom, but then she looked around and said, “I’m already down one worker who had to stay home with a sick child today. If I leave…”

“What can we do, chiquita?” Samson said.

“Um,” she said, looking around and noticing all the bystanders. “If they take her to the hospital, I’m going with them, which will leave us too short-staffed to run the shop. I’ll have to close down for the day, I guess.”

Ivan held up a hand and said, “Not necessarily. Do the two remaining workers know how everything goes, more or less?”

She nodded. “Marissa can cook, and Tilly knows how the machines work.”

“Perfect,” Ivan said. “Let us run the place for you today. I can help with cooking.”

“Absolutely!” Grandma Kate said. “There’s no reason why you should lose your revenue stream when it’s not necessary. I can stay and help, too. Just show me where to wash my hands and put up my hair, and give me an apron. I can take orders and deliver food. Oh, don’t look at me like that, Hank Stinson. I’ve helped out at Lusty Appetites a time or two.”

“Are you sure?” Veronica asked as she pulled her dark auburn hair back into a tidy knot at the back of her head with an elastic band. “You said you wanted to do some holiday shopping this afternoon.”

“I can still do that later, sweet girl. I’m not on a schedule, after all.”

“Well, all right. I just don’t want you to wear yourself out.”

The little white-haired sprite chuckled and flapped her hand. “I have on my comfy shoes,” she said, demonstrating by waggling a foot at all the naysayers. “And I still have excellent vision and faculties. Now, who’s staying to help me?”

Chuckling through tears, Cassie gave her a hug and handed Ivan her keys to the shop. “You’re sure about this?”

Ivan grinned. “It’s my time off, and I’d like to help, too.”

Samson said, “I have to be at work by three, but I can stay for a while. I can take orders and run a cash register.”

“I normally close at three anyway,” Cassie said. “That would be perfect—Oh no!”

“What?” he asked at the horrified look on her face.

“Violet’s cake! I was supposed to finish all the layers today. Crap! I’ll just have to do it later tonight.”